The Dance We're Thankful for This Year

Happy Thanksgiving, dance friends! Since today is a day for reflection and gratitude (and eating…so much eating), I asked my fellow Dance Spirit editors to tell me the dance-world things they’re most grateful for. Here’s what they had to say:

Courtney Bowers, managing editor: “I’m thankful for Jennifer Garner’s hilarious ballet memes, Michaela DePrince’s super-cool behind-the-scenes vlog, Janelle Ginestra’s #Beastmode, and the magical Rockettes for always kicking off the festive holiday season perfectly.”

Olivia Manno, assistant editor: “This year, I’m thankful for Dorrance Dance’s insanely inspirational performance of Myelination at Fall for Dance, for Reid Bartelme and Jack Ferver saying everything we’re thinking on their podcast ‘What’s Going On With Dance And Stuff,’ and for Harper Watters and Chun Wai Chan doing the Spicy Noodle Challenge on an episode of ‘The Pre Show,’ which resulted in this very important content:”

Helen Rolfe, assistant editor: “Forever #grateful to live on the same planet as James Bruce Whiteside and his Instagram captions (which always make me giggle). Also pre-grateful that Allison Holker and tWitch are hosting this year’s ‘Disney’s Fairytale Weddings‘ special on Freeform December 11—dreams really do come true, y’all.”

And me? I’m thankful for Cosmo the Cougar’s soul-destroying moves, and Yanis Marshall slaying on the runway at Fashion Week, and the fact that Mean Girls: The Musical is a real thing that exists now, and Tiler Peck’s insane fouettés on a varnished wood floor—and, most of all, for this wild, wonderful job that lets me nerd out about dance 24/7.

Enjoy your turkey, everybody! 🦃 🦃 🦃